The Danger of Pseudoscience and New Healthcare Findings

Michele Warg
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The alternative medicine industry generates billions of dollars of revenue each year, as many people want natural remedies for ailments ranging from dandruff to high blood pressure. Although some natural remedies are safe and effective, others are dangerous to those who take medications or have chronic health conditions. Some people who use alternative medicine also forego regular medical examinations, which can potentially delay diagnoses of serious health issues.

 

Scientific research has shown that some alternative medicine treatments do have health benefits. The Boston Globe published an article titled "Alternative Treatments: What Works and What Doesn't" that lists several alternative medicine treatments supported by clinical research. These treatments include omega-3 fatty acids for reducing anxiety in young adults, acupuncture to relieve some types of pain, and clinical hypnosis to relieve the hot flashes that occur with menopause. The author also lists several alternative medicine treatments that did not meet scientific standards. This list includes the use of ginkgo to prevent memory loss and mental decline, St. John's wort to treat depression, and echinacea to ease the symptoms of respiratory problems.

 

Although alternative medicine treatments can relieve the symptoms of minor medical problems, eschewing traditional medicine and new healthcare technology in favor of alternative treatments can be dangerous. Using alternative medicine treatments while using traditional treatments is also dangerous, as essential oils, herbs, and other natural remedies can interact with prescription and over-the-counter drugs. For example, cod liver oil and garlic can thin the blood, which is a danger to patients who have bleeding disorders. St. John's wort can interact with chemotherapy drugs and antibiotics, making the natural remedy a potential danger for those who have cancer or serious infections.

 

Some alternative medicine therapies have been labeled as nothing more than pseudoscience, which is also called quackery or junk science. A pseudoscience is a set of beliefs or processes that is given the legitimacy of science without undergoing the rigorous experiments that help prove or disprove true scientific theories. Pseudoscience is often driven by the desire for commercial gain, so it is truly dangerous when unsuspecting patients believe the claims of practitioners who do not have their best interests at heart. In "How to Deal with Patients Googling It," a Nexxt author says that some patients use the Internet to research their symptoms because it is cheaper than going to a doctor. If these patients find information about alternative treatments, they might try those treatments without telling their doctors, increasing their risk of drug interactions or complications.

 

As a healthcare professional, you must be able to determine whether your patients are using alternative medicine therapies so that you can help them understand the potential risks. You must also be able to explain the benefits of new healthcare technology versus alternative medicine treatments. Doing this effectively can help your patients avoid the potential dangers of using alternative medicine instead of traditional medicine.

 

(Photo courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net)
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  • Melissa Kennedy
    Melissa Kennedy •
    Wow, this is such a great discussion!@Benjamin - You make a great point. It's important to consider why so many people seek out alternative treatments. Is it because of price? Maybe, but homeopathic treatments can be very expensive and things like acupuncture and other treatments can cost more than traditional treatment. Maybe it's because patients don't feel that they are being heard and don't trust their doctors. What do you think medical professional can do to make patients feel that they are being adequately cared for?@Shenice - I think that in the future, there will be a greater push to combine what's good about traditional medicine with the things that work in natural medicine. It's very interesting to read about.@Diana - You're right that patients should discuss any alternative therapy with a medical professional. Sometimes there are treatments that will interact with current medications or conditions.
  • Benjamin B
    Benjamin B •
    There are several different thoughts regarding the use of alternative medicine. The first is that our society is growing more trusting of certain buzz words like "natural." They seem to think that because a suggested treatment is associated with the word natural, that it is safe for a layman to use without a professional's advice. I used to have a professor, who said 30 years ago, "how about some natural Belladonna?" to illustrate the dangers of assuming that all natural products are safe for human consumption.     Having said that, we need to examine the reasons as to why so many people seek alternative treatments. One of the most prevalent reasons is the need to find something more economical than seeking medical attention. Unfortunately the rising costs of healthcare have scared the average consumer from seeking a professional's advice. If the average cost of a healthcare provider was a reasonable amount that people were willing to pay, more people would seek medical attention instead of self diagnosing and self treating themselves. However both the cost of healthcare services, and the cost people are willing to pay for these services, are going in opposite directions.
  • Deborah H
    Deborah H •
    On the other hand, I refuse to take any pharmaceutical drug which is advertised on TV.  
  • Jayakumar N
    Jayakumar N •
    The article is very thought provoking and complements current scientific thinking.  It is true that trying to combine allopathic and alternative medicines can have serious consequences if not properly monitored by a trained medical profession (in alternative or conventional therapy).  Having said that, many "alternative" medical sciences were the source of medicines that modern science uses today, especially systems like Ayurveda which gave rise to arabic and western medical thinking in the 19th century and was proven largely to be true and effective by NIH studies unlike some systems like Homepathy which were largely found to be no different from placebo controls.  But it is dangerous to eliminate everything with one sweeping statement.  it would be safer to say that most treatments in Homeopathy is a placebo,but some of them might have medical value.  It is always good to approach any subject with a healthy criticism, examine it scientifically and then accept or eliminate it.  But as the article correctly points out (it is not meant to criticise alternative medicine as some comments here believe), a trained medical professional is necessary to prescribe and advice patients when they opt for a different therapy.  High medical costs can drive patients to cheaper alternative medicines and this is the reason why conventional medical therapies should be made available to everyone in an affordable manner which the new healthcare law seems to address.  
  • Shenice W
    Shenice W •
    I am an "alternative medical student." I am studying to be a naturopath, we are not quacks. You should study the history of allopathic medicine (M.D.s) in which giving patients mercury and blood letting was used to treat their patients in the past. With all things that enter the body there is some potential for harm (including food), but the medicine, or the poison, is in the dose. What science fails to realize is that medicines were found naturally in the earth before pharm companies began to copy them in labs. The conventional medical world is afraid of botanicals, nutrition, and other cultural medicines because you can't patent them in a lab. You can not discreetly prove why broccoli has the healing power to change cell machinery of the thyroid, or prevent cancer. Check out my school's website, www.scnm.edu, and see what naturopathic medicine is about. There is a time and place for everything, pharm and natural products. We pretty much practice integrative medicine. If a patient needs thyroid hormone replacement medication for hypothyroidism we write a script for it. But we can also give the patient natural things to help increase the function and health of the thyroid too. We can also help eliminate environmental and dietary agents known to slow thyroid function. We believe in prevention, and first doing no harm to the patient. Why not teach your patient how to prevent diabetes and hypertension, versus treating them and creating a chronic condition.  
  • Merian F
    Merian F •
    I am an RN, using some of the herbs that I had proven to help me with my medical symptoms. Depends on individual cases. If you take lots of RX meds, you need to be cautious, involve your doctor. I don't take any medicine except my thyroid pill. I take my greens and fruits via the blender way. It works. Learned a lot on eating healthy from Dr. Oz show.
  • Melinda H
    Melinda H •
    Western docs just treats the symptoms but alternative medicines and acupuncture with repeats session will treat the symptoms AND the problems!!!  Have you ever noticed that every drug commercial gives a long list of side effects...? I mean who wants to take it if its gonna give you all that side effects...unless its your LAST choice after trying alternatives like: herbs, acupuncture, exercise, eating healthy...etc.
  • Allison H
    Allison H •
    Well done. Many articles about Alternative Medicine seek to discourage, discount, and disrespect educated and legitimate Alternative Medicine practitioners.
  • Diana M
    Diana M •
    Is important that the patient inform his M D if trying any herb to avoid thinning the blood using ginko and aspirine at the same time. It is euse to do not vlisecthe door to integrative medicine because niw many western doctors are inerested in natural products to help their patients.
  • Sharon K
    Sharon K •
    Pls remember that traditional medicine is not without it's on dangers.  my sister got a side effect of chronic luekemia from her use of humira oer her physician.  In all things"Buyer Beware!"
  • Virginia A
    Virginia A •
    I'm sure some Alternative Medicine modalities may prove to be quackery, but what gets me is when Western Medicine practices new tx's and it doesn't work know one accuses them of quackery. There's just too much discrimination against any other form of treatment unless it's Western Medicine. Well keep in mind that Osteopathic Docs were discriminated against at one time. In France they still are.  By 2015 they'll be accredited by the same standard body M.D.s are. So people need to stop being controlling and narrow minded. Oh and please don't manipulate my statement into something it's not.
  • cesar c
    cesar c •
    I was a type 2 diabetic for years relying on my doctor's prescriptions to alleviate my symptoms. I finally decided to eat healthy and did away with my diabetes and metformin prescription.  Of course my doctor didn't like that.
  • Morris C
    Morris C •
    Alternative medicine has helped a little and traditional medicine or healthcare can treat symptoms and usually heals minor problems but isn't the best cure for more serious problems such as inactivity due to lots of psychiatric disorders. Therapy and pills do provide relief but with life being uncertain, you never know what will work in treating medical disorders of the mind. Some patients have other health problems and the best medicine isn't always the right answer to health problems. Average people are encouraged to grow in society or remain average but real success in health is when we let average people become superior people especially if they have fallen in love with superior minded people. I am an ordinary person with ordinary goals but I wish I could be superior. I look to culture factors as indicator to where and what I can be in life. As a person who takes medication for stress, and other psychiatric disorders, I feel there is little I have seen in improvement in my condition and I suspect it won't get better unless something happens that is the answer to my problems. I have unusual needs being a person of mental illness. For the most part traditional means says get plenty of rest, exercise and nutrition. Thank goodness, I have left eating junk food less than I used too. I just don't  know.
  • Raine S
    Raine S •
    This essay uses the Boston Globe as a reference for pseudoscience, which is insulting the intelligence of nursing scientists. I hope the author is never asked to submit an essay again, and that the editor is relieved of their duties. Please attempt to present something of value in the future.
  • Cynthia (Cindi) B
    Cynthia (Cindi) B •
    You know at one point the docs will need to drop their pride and/or greed to partner with those who offer alternative/functional protocol. The people who are suffering here are the patients. We are the ones who must live with the sideeffects and/or die from a new med. The pharma industry just continues to pad their wallets.  If the docs would stop and re-read the Hippocratic oath they vowed to keep, the would "do no harm & not play God".  In this 21st century of patient care, we the patients are the ones who are 'teaching' our docs about our illness. What's wrong with this picture??
  • Rosaline G
    Rosaline G •
    After reading this article; yes certain alternative drugs may be harmful to ones health if you don't know how to make them or learn what its for; however, it's better than getting a flu shot or any other shot and getting paralyze, because the medication was defaulted and the nurses or physicians can say is that they don't understand what happened to that batch! C'mon wake up!
  • Deborah D
    Deborah D •
    Your worried about alternative medicine and financial gain??!?!?!???!!! You need to look into your own backyard for the biggest fraud and commercial gain ever perpetrated on the public. Vaccines, are more dangerous than any disease they supposedly prevent, which is a falsehood. You people are incredibly stupid to think people aren't waking up to the scam. I did.  
  • Nancy C
    Nancy C •
    Echinacea is know to help decrease the symptoms of a UTI (Urinary Tract Infection), pain and fever. This can also help treat symptoms of pharyngitis as well.

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